So, I decided to add a part two to the original! Enjoy!
The alarm was blaring at 5:45 and it took all the willpower I had to not pick the damned thing and whip it across the room. I groaned and sat up slowly trying to orient myself. I swung my legs slowly over the side of the bed and gently pressed my bare feet to the plush white rug. Clint was right, the cast could have, and should have, come off by now. I would be lying if I said I hadn't been nervous to use the battered appendage. Slowly I stood, testing the strength as I put all my weight on it. It was sore, to be sure, and would be worse after this training session. Carefully I discarded the clothes I had slept in into a heap in the corner before selecting a new pair of black spandex training pants and a purple long sleeve compression shirt. I opted for a pair white sneakers and snagged a red handkerchief off the dresser that I carefully tied around my head to keep my stray pieces of dark hair off my face.
After I was dressed I quietly crept out of my room and shut the door behind me. The compound section of the tower was completely and eerily quiet. The team must have been exhausted because even by this hour I would have normally encountered someone on my way down to the gym but I didn't pass a soul. I grabbed a towel from the rack outside the door before pushing the heavy metal door open to reveal my mentor. He looked bright eyed and ready to work dressed in his uniform minus the heavy leather jacket.
"Didn't get the memo we were suiting up for this session." I said offhandedly. He smirked and waved me off before turning to grab a shaker bottle full of a strange thick and green substance that hardly moved within its chamber. I took the proffered bottle hesitantly.
"The only clean clothes I had were the spare uniform. Drink up princess." He chuckled at the look of disgust on my face. I popped the top of it open and took a long pull, silently oraying it would make it down to my stomach without reappearing. I wiped my lips and bent over placing my hands on the top of my thighs breathing deeply.
"If you had looked in your closet, you would know that wasn't true." He looked over questioningly. "I had a lot time to catch up on laundry." I winked at him and dared to take another pull of the drink as so far the previous had stayed down. Clint looked a little uncomfortable at the thought of me touching his dirty clothes, but said nothing. I stared at the remainder of the green sludge in the bottle, wincing. So far it had stayed where it was supposed to but I was starting to seriously doubt I could choke the last of it down. What had gone down so far was sitting in my chest like a lead weight.
"Do I even want to know what's in this?" I asked him shaking the bottle for emphasis. He stopped pulling mats across the floor and stared up the ceiling thoughtfully before shrugging.
"Little of this, little of that. Protein powder, mostly. We got some bulk to add back on to ya." He resumed his duty and with all the resolve I had left forced the last of the liquid down my throat. I took a few steadying breaths before depositing the bottle on the bench and heading over to the mats. "Nothing crazy today, alright? Stretching, some walking, maybe hit the bag around a little bit. Last thing I want is you dropping dead on my watch." His instructions were stern but I knew he meant them with good humor. He instructed me to lie down on the mat and he started stretching out both legs, trying to gauge the range of motion in the recovering one.
After he seemed satisfied with the stretching, we made our way over to the machines where he directed me to a treadmill. Begrudgingly I let him set the incline and speed and he turned me out on my own with instruction to go only as long as I absolutely could. I placed my earbuds in and started my music. I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate on the blaring melodies to distract myself from the constant dull ache.
The next time I opened my eyes, Steve Rogers was standing in front of the treadmill, brows knit together pensively. I squeaked in surprise but didn't stop walking, just removed the headphones. I nodded to him, feeling a little too winded to hold a conversation. He passed a bottle of water of the top of the machine and I accepted it willingly. He came around the side of the machine and took in the stats it was showing. I had walked about three miles so far, though at a painstakingly slow speed. He sighed and shrugged his shoulders, reaching over to hit the "Stop Cycle" button. Barton reappeared as I slowed to a stop looking irritated.
"Uh, Cap, excuse me, this is my pupil. I'm sure if you ask nicely, you can have one of your own." He pointed to me and then back to himself before crossing his arms over his chest, annoyance plain on his face.
"I don't need a pupil Barton, but thanks for the offer. Don't you think this is a little too much too fast?" He asked motioning over to me. I was now sitting back on the mat, trying my hardest to stretch out the screaming muscles in the poor leg. As much as it hurt, I had to admit it felt good to put it back to use again. I took a long pull from the water bottle before setting it next to me and turning my attention back to the two men.
"Can I just state, for the record, that I was an Asgardian warrior before either of your parent's great, great, grandparents were ever even a thought? I don't need to be treated like I'm made of porcelain." I snapped and they turned their attention on me. Where I expected to see guilt on their faces, I only saw annoyance which did not quell my frustrations.
"Well princess, if that's the case, why were you favoring that leg for so long? You should have been down here training as soon as they took the plaster cast off. You know you were ready. "Barton scoffed and walked to his own water bottle waiting for answer that I wasn't willing to give him. I pushed myself off of the mat and towards the boxing ring that took up the middle of the room. I carefully rolled myself into it and threw my shoes through the ropes. I looked at my mentor in a challenging manner, waving him over. He glared daggers in my direction as he walked over to the ring slowly. "I'm not getting in there with you. That's a stupid idea and you know it. Get out." His tone told me he meant business but I ignored it.
"Steve?" I offered to the blonde. He too glared at me and rolled his eyes.
"Listen to Barton, you're not ready to spar. You were winded after three miles walking. You're gonna get hurt." Steve tried to reason with me but I was not having it. I had to prove to these two that I could handle whatever they wanted to throw at me. I opened my mouth to retort when the doors opened once more to reveal Thor. I beamed at him excitedly.
"Brother! Come, spar with me. These two are too afraid." I called out to him. Immediately protests erupted from Steve and Barton. Thor threw a cheeky smile to me while slowly approaching the ring. He rested his arms on the ropes, looking up to me.
"Syn, it seems to me that the Captain and Clint do not wish to fight you because you are indeed, not ready. I would be willing to take you to the metal room to work on other methods of combat, should you so wish." He was offering a compromise, one that certainly did not thrill our teammates.
"So you're gonna take her into the simulation room and throw lightening at her? You're right, much better than what she wanted to do in the first place." Steve scoffed and took my arm gently as I rolled out of the ring. "This is not a good idea. I know you're bored, I know you're trying to prove a point, but please just for once, listen to me." His bright blue eyes cut through my green ones like a hot knife through wax. They were laced with worry and maybe a touch of annoyance. I lay a hand over the one cover my arm and smiled softly before pulling away.
"I'll be fine. It's a simulation room. No one is actually trying to attack me." I reasoned as I grabbed my towel and water and started to follow Thor towards the door.
"But you're playing with live ammunition." Barton pointed out. I shrugged before grasping the door handle.
"You two are more than welcome to come supervise if you're so concerned. Like you said Barton, nothing crazy." I nodded at the two stoic men before leading Thor out. We stopped briefly so Thor could retrieve his trusty metal companion, Mjolnir, before setting up the simulation room. We went for an open field back drop with what Tony liked to refer to as the "duck hunting" protocol. It was essentially just "enemies" falling from the sky at various speeds.
We went a slow pace, me flexing my mental muscles gently at first. I managed to lift and throw some objects at our assailants and throw a rather impressive ice ball towards a particularly nasty villain that for some reason distinctly resembled General Ross. All the while Barton and Steve watched on from the gallery windows, not particularly impressed with us.
"Hey guys. Who's playin?" Brue Banner sidled up to his teammates, an intrigued look on his face. When his eyes met the sight in front of him, he groaned. "I probably don't have to ask if you guys thought this was a good idea." He said humorlessly. Clint merely grunted and Steve remained silent, arms crossed over his chest.
"Thor, want to really light things up?" I asked my brother as a new wave of enemies came pouring from the top of the room. I saw him smile as I looked at him out of the corner of my eyes.
"Do you wish to use our party trick?" He called happily as he bashed a few ghouls away with Mjolnir. I nodded to him before moving to the other side of the room, taking position. Steve suddenly threw his hands against the glass pounding furiously.
"Are they gonna do what I think they're gonna do?" Bruce asked cautiously. Barton put his head and his hand and sighed loudly. Steve continued to pound on the glass hard enough that audible cracking noises were heard and the glass struggled to withstand his abuse.
"Stop it! Stop it right now or I'm coming in! Kitty!" Steve yelled as loud as he could but we ignored him and sized each other up. I held my hands out towards Thor who held Mjolnir to the ceiling. Immediately lightning coursed through it and when it was sufficiently charged, he directed it directly to me. My entire body coursed with warmth and the fuzzy feeling that was pure electricity coursed through me. I let the current lift my body slowly from the ground, the light enveloping me blinding to the onlookers. I circled back to face the enemies head on and released the raw energy into something similar to the feeling and sound of a jet that breaks the sound barrier in the sky.
Every other time we had performed this trick, it worked flawlessly. The raw energy from Thor amplified and fired like a million projectiles by the mental gun that was my mind. This time, however, something felt…off. Where there was once warmth suddenly felt like fire and instead of propelling outward, I started to feel the energy worm its way into my body. My lungs felt like I was breathing in fire from an inferno, my limbs almost felt cold and I tried to scream but no sound would come.
"Thor! Take it off of her! Get it off!" Clint was screaming now. Bruce began to look ill and Clint looked to him worriedly. "Get out of here Banner." He shook the other man's shoulder roughly and Bruce started to back away slowly, sensing his friend may be right. Thor finally seemed to realize this was not going the way it was supposed to and quickly held the hammer towards me, siphoning the lightning back into it before directly it towards the back of the room. As the last remaining crackles of energy left my body, I dropped to the floor gasping for breath and clawing at the floor. Thor ran to me immediately and the door to the room slid open, Steve and Clint rushing through it.
I grabbed onto Thor's large arm like a lifeline. I struggled still to catch my breath but no air could pass. I dug my nails into Thor's arms, fear gripping like the tightest vice. Suddenly a strong fist came down square in between my shoulder blades. I tried to gasp but couldn't and when the second blow came I buckled under the force but still nothing. Finally the third blow rained down, the hardest of them yet and through the tears I was able to take one long gasping breath before I fell to my stomach on the concrete floor. Where once there had been bone crushing punches there was now a large hand wrapped gently around the back of my neck, a thumb tracing small but insistent circles into the sweaty flesh there.
"That's it, in and out. Keep breathing. Don't you stop." Steve's voice was low and gruff in my ear. I pressed my face to the cool concrete silently hoping to sink into it so that the cold may offer some respite from the heat that seemed like it would never leave my body. When my head stopped spinning and the corners of my vision were no longer so blurry I slowly brought myself to my knees with the help of three sets of hands. I raised my eyes to the glowing pair of cerulean ones curtained by thick blonde lashes that were Steve's.
"I'm sorry. You were right." My throat was raw and my voice was raspy. A bottle of water was pressed into my hands from Bruce who had cautiously crept into the room. I held it to my lips but couldn't seem to raise it high enough to drink from it. A gentle push up from the bottom of the bottle came along with a gentle hand on the back of my hand. I winced as the liquid rushed down my throat but welcomed the pain as it also brought relief. I released the bottle into the care of Clint who put it beside him. Steve smiled sadly before speaking. "I won't tell you that I told you so…this time. I think you may have learned your lesson this time." I nodded dejectedly.
"What the hell is going on?" We all looked up to see Tony in the door way, still clad in checkered pajama pants and clutching a coffee cup in his hand. I looked away, embarrassed.
"Just your hard- headed kid pushing herself too far. You sure she's not actually yours?" Clint asked with a wry smile across his face. Tony sighed before walking up and kneeling in front of me, Steve giving him some room.
"Oh she's mine, in every way that counts. And also in every way I never wanted." He reached out to lay a hand on my head. "You okay kid?" He asked quietly like it was only for me to hear. I nodded and rested my hand of the one of his that had come to rest on my shoulder.
"I need a shower." I proclaimed as I slowly brought myself to my feet. I pushed all the hands off me and slowly trudged to the door. I could feel my body starting to slowly put itself back together but I was so sore. My bones were even aching. A lithe redheaded Russian blocked my path to the exit and I sighed, too tired to resist her.
"How about a bath instead, solnishko?" I took the arm she offered and she escorted me to the elevators that the housing quarters of the building. When she pushed the door open to the bathroom attached to my room, I found the tub already filled, the smell of lavender essential oil filling my nose.
"How did you-" I started but the spy raised a hand sharply cutting me off.
"Banner told me what was going on. I figured this might be just what you needed." She smirked before leaving the room. I smiled to myself as I slowly and painfully shed the now scorched clothing. Reaching a hand into the deep tub I tested the water briefly before carefully lowering myself in. I let the warmth of the water soothe the aches in my body with the help of whatever other potions Natasha had dumped in with it.
"Kitty? Is everything okay?" My eyes snapped open and my eyes shifted to the closed door warily.
"Hey Steve, is there anything you needed?" I called awkwardly back through the door. I heard him chuckle lowly and smiled despite the odd situation.
"Just making sure you're okay in there." I snorted and flicked a mass of bubbles away from me.
"Not to sound ungrateful, but I don't think I'd be calling you in to rescue me in this situation." He chuckled again and I rested my back against the tub, allowing my eyes to slide shut again. I let myself slip beneath the bubbly surface, letting the water cover my head. When I resurfaced I grabbed the shampoo and conditioner and got to work scrubbing the sweat from my hair. I felt infinitely better and started to pull myself from the bath after pulling the stopper.
"Still okay? Need me to get Nat?" I was startled again, expecting him to be long gone by now. I grabbed one of the fluffy towels on the counter and wrapped my hair up in before using another to soak the water off of my body.
"Still good, Rogers. Don't you have something else you could be doing?" I asked as I fished my robe off of the hook behind the door. I slowly opened the door to reveal him sitting in the frame, back to one side with one long leg wedged into the other side with other tucked beneath him. I carefully stepped around him before walking over to my bed and flopping down.
"I don't have anywhere else to be." He shrugged, a lazy smile plastered on his face. I pulled the towel off of my head and threw it to the floor in a wet heap and pulled myself all the way onto the bed, bringing the blanket up over me. "Don't you want to get dressed?" He asked as he was watched my movements. I looked at him with heavy lidded eyes.
"You're invading my privacy." I replied quirking an eyebrow in his direction. He considered the thought before slowly standing and walking to the door.
"Get dressed." He prodded gently, hand on the handle. "Then come down for some lunch." I waved my hand dismissively at him, forming it into a mock salute.
"Yes Sir Captain Rogers." I replied slyly. He made a face at me before turning the handle and walking out, and smile hidden on his features. I let my eyes slide shut again and drifted off, swearing I could smell burnt toast.
So a couple short notes here in this one. Since Marvel universe skewed Norse mythology so badly already, I added to it. Kitty is Thor's sister Syn, who according to old Norse mythology was a protection goddess who guarded Frigg's throne room.
solnishko - Means little sun in Russian